Yolanda vanderGaast is a graduate of the Sculpture/Installation program at Ontario College of Art and Design University. She maintains her studio practice in Toronto and has been employed at MST Bronze Limited Art Foundry for nearly three decades. Renowned for her refined techniques in mold making, Yolanda specializes in creating plaster moulds and flexible moulds made of urethane and silicone for the lost wax casting process.
Yolanda’s expertise extends beyond the foundry, influencing her studio practice where she emphasizes process and employs a diverse range of materials to create sculpture. Her works encompass both figurative and abstract forms, ranging in scale from small to monumental. Cast in bronze, brass, and aluminum, her sculptures are further fabricated using steel and stainless steel, and cast in wax, rubber, resin, polymer, gypsum, and low-melting alloys.
Yolanda’s expertise includes the creation of sculpture prototypes and patterns for sand casting. She achieves this through the carving of wax and styrene, sculpting in clay or plasticine to create enlargements from maquettes to monumental scale.
In addition to mould making and casting, Yolanda specializes in patination on silicon bronze, having developed a comprehensive range of colours and techniques. As a member of the Canadian Association for the Conservation of Cultural Property, she continues to expand her knowledge in the conservation and maintenance of indoor and outdoor bronze sculpture.
Public sculpture commissions include installations such as “The Last Alarm,” a bronze and granite Fallen Firefighters Monument situated on the waterfront near Queens Quay in Toronto, Ontario. Another notable work is “Their Sacrifice, Our Gratitude,” a bronze and stainless steel Fallen Firefighter Monument located in Del Crary Park, Peterborough, Ontario. Yolanda has also created outdoor sculptures for The Odette Sculpture Park in Windsor, Ontario, and the London School of Economics in the United Kingdom.
Beyond figurative works, Yolanda has demonstrated her versatility by designing and producing corporate and achievement awards for organizations such as the True Patriot Love Foundation, the Television Bureau of Canada, the Writers Guild of Canada, Kansas State University, and Washburn University School of Law.
“Illumination” stands as a 6ft. high stainless steel wall sculpture fabricated for the Metropolitan Community Church in Los Angeles, California. This donation tree gained recognition by being featured in Metalcraft Magazine.
- Last Alarm – Fallen Firefighter Memorial, 2000, sculpted by Yolanda vanderGaast for the City of Toronto Fire Services, Toronto, Ontario
- Penguins on a Waterfall, 2000, sculpted and enlarged by Yolanda vanderGaast, Odette Sculpture Park, Windsor, Ontario
- Basilian Pioneer Monument, 2002 (15 ft.), designed by Emil Telizen and sculpted by Yolanda vanderGaast, Mundare, Alberta
- Illumination, 2008 (6 ft.), stainless-steel logo fabricated by Yolanda vanderGaast, for MCC Church of Topeka, Kansas, Los Angeles, California and Kansas City, Missouri, U.S.A.
- Their Sacrifice, Our Gratitude – Fallen Firefighter Monument, 2009 (35 ft. long), by MYO – Myros Trutiak & Yolanda vanderGaast, for the City of Peterborough Fire Services, Peterborough, Ontario